Bowe Bergdahl, the U.S. Army private whose 2009 disappearance from his post in Afghanistan and subsequent capture by the Taliban led to a prisoner exchange for his release in 2014, will face a court-martial and a possible life sentence.

The New York Times reports that Gen. Robert B. Abrams ordered that Bergdahl face charges of desertion and endangering troops for his alleged abandonment of the remote Afghanistan outpost where he was stationed in 2009.

The proposed charges, which carry a possible life sentence, are much harsher than those recommended by the officer who oversaw Bergdahl's preliminary hearing in September, according to CNN. That officer suggested that Bergdahl go before a special court martial that could not impose jail time.

The announcement comes as the second season of the podcast Serial has put a renewed spotlight on Bergdahl's case. Producer Sarah Koenig, whose investigation last year into the murder case against Adnan Syed made Serial the most downloaded podcast ever, has turned her attention to Bergdahl and the circumstances behind his disappearance.

In the first episode, which went live last week, excerpts from a conversation between Bergdahl and filmmaker Mark Boal gave listeners Bergdahl's first public comments on his decision to leave his post. Bergdahl portrayed the act as a form of protest against what he described as failures of leadership in his unit.

Bergdahl's disappearance sparked a massive manhunt that exhausted and disheartened thousands of searching soldiers, Maj. Margaret Kurtz testified in September, according to the New York Times.

Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban and spent nearly five years in captivity before the United States released five Taliban prisoners in exchange for his freedom in May 2014. The swap drew criticism from Republicans in Congress, some of whom accused the Obama administration of negotiating with terrorists.